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Yankees break out early to finish sweep of Twins

Mark Teixeira was hitting .198 on May 8 with five homers and 15 RBIs. Since Alex Rodriguez returned to the lineup that night, Teixeira has raised his average to .239, doubled his home run total and increased his RBIs to 29.

Tues., May 19, 2009

NEW YORK – Mark Teixeira was hitting .198 on May 8 with five homers and 15 RBIs. Since Alex Rodriguez returned to the lineup that night, Teixeira has raised his average to .239, doubled his home run total and increased his RBIs to 29.

"Pitchers are just making a few more mistakes," Teixeira said. "It puts a lot of pressure on them when Alex is in the lineup and, you know, a pitcher is not going to want to get into deep counts and maybe walk me with a guy like A-Rod behind me."

Teixeira homered from both sides of the plate, combining with Rodriguez for back-to-back drives in a six-run first inning against ailing Glen Perkins, and New York beat the Minnesota Twins 7-6 last night to complete a four-game sweep.

After stringing together three straight walk-off wins for the first time since 1972, the Yankees overcame a 2-0 first-inning deficit and hung on to extend their winning streak to a season-high six. Andy Pettitte (4-1) won consecutive starts for the first time this year, allowing four runs and 12 hits in 6 2/3 innings, and New York improved to 23-3 at home against the Twins during the regular season since the start of 2002.

"I can't wait to get out of here," Minnesota's Denard Span said. "Not just the stadium, but the whole city."

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